Freefly Systems to Begin Shipping MōVI M10 on August 15th and Announces Pre-Orders for MōVI M5

Production of breakthrough gyro-stabilized handheld camera stabilizer ahead of schedule

Last Updated: July 15, 2013 1:59 am GMT

(Seattle, Washington--July 15, 2013) Freefly Systems is pleased to announce that the award-winning MōVI M10 camera stabilizer will begin shipping to customers starting August 15th for $14,995. The company will also start taking pre-orders for its new smaller camera stabilizer, MōVI M5, which supports cameras up to 5 lbs. (2.3kg).

Since its April introduction, MōVI M10 has been used on over a dozen film, television, and commercial productions and has garnered an incredible amount of praise from high-end filmmakers such as JJ Abrams, Alfonso Cuaron, ASC cinematographers, and numerous independent filmmakers.

“We’ve been hard at work at Freefly since the launch of MōVI at NAB, incorporating all of the feedback from our field tests with filmmakers and camera operators, says Freefly’s co-founder Tabb Firchau. Such production model refinements to the MōVI M10 include: (1) widening the camera tray to better accommodate larger camera packages, including the Canon C300 and C500, the RED EPIC with side handle, the Canon EOS 1DC, and the Blackmagic Cinema Camera; (2) new ability to run heavier camera packages than we showed at NAB – now up to 12 lbs/5.4 kg; and (3) new feature to adjust and balance the camera largely without tools.”

“I’m completely sold on the MōVI,” states cinematographer Alex Buono, known for his Film Unit work for Saturday Night Live (SNL). He recently had a chance to try out the MōVI on set. “It’s ability to smoothly pan, tilt or roll remotely while it’s being operated allows me the ability to create camera moves that are unlike anything I’ve ever seen and yet are incredibly easy to execute,” says Buono.

For a key shot, the MōVI operator simply held the top handle down at arm’s length aimed behind him and ran straight forward, “no­looking” the shot, while the remote operator kept the camera trained on a character’s feet and then performed the hard tilt-up to the actor’s face from his remote control. “After they nailed the shot on take one, I just stood there with a dumb look on my face. ‘Uh...I guess we should do it again, right?’ I asked. So we did another take and they nailed it again. I looked at my watch and realized that at this rate, we were far ahead of schedule which gave me the opportunity to further finesse the shot, and the luxury to create half a dozen shots instead of just one or two – and in a very rare occurrence for many of my shoots – we finished ahead of schedule,” Buono says.

Freefly was also recently invited to demonstrate the MōVI rig at an American Society of Cinematographers event, where Director of Photography host Kees Van Oostrum, ASC simply stated, “MōVI is the future”.

The new MōVI M10 will start shipping on August 15th, 2013 on a first-come-first-served basis to customers who have pre-ordered units. New customers can visit http://www.freeflysystems.com for more information and place their MōVI M10 pre­orders now at http://www.movirig.com (and in the near future via select dealers worldwide).

Freefly Systems Also Introduces New Smaller MōVI M5 Rig
Building on its gyro-stabilized MōVI M10 camera rig, Freefly Systems also announces a new smaller, lighter, lower-priced MōVI M5, which will begin shipping in the fourth quarter of 2013 for $4,995. The MōVI M5 camera stabilizer is sized to accommodate most DSLR sized cameras like the Canon 5D, Panasonic GH2/3, Nikon D800, and Sony A99.

The MōVI M5 draws on the advanced stabilization technology developed for the MōVI M10 allowing for amazingly smooth footage in even the most demanding situations. The compact form factor and lightweight nature of the MōVI M5 allows camera movement that would be impossible in the past. With the release of the MōVI M5, Freefly aims to bring big budget camera moves to a wider range of productions. To find out more and place pre-orders, visit http://www.freeflysystems.com and http://www.movirig.com.

About Freefly Systems:
Freefly represents the intersection of art and technology. Its team consists of industry leading specialists all focused on one task – inventing solutions to allow unrestricted camera movement. Freefly initially created the CineStar line of multi-rotor camera platforms, which allowed smooth, stable and dynamic low altitude aerials. After years of research and development in camera stability, Freefly has created the MōVI stabilized camera gimbal. MōVI empowers a new era of stabilized cinematography on a variety of platforms, from handheld to helicopter and everything in between. For further information, visit http://www.freeflysystems.com.